The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1887-07-08
THE SALMON SEASON THUS FAR.
Very Small Catch on the Lower Columbia.

exists In every cannery on the lower
Columbia. There are few fish, the
cannery employees are working some
of them not half the time, and very
little salmon is being put up. Well
informed Gamers estimate the pack
on the river up to the first inst,
from 175,000 to 10000 cases: proba-
bly, 1000 cases would be a fair es-
innate OF the total salmon pack on
the Columbia river from April 1st to
July 1st this year. Usually there is
May run, a June run, and q July
run. As for the April run it is thing
OF the past. Time was when bosts
in April caught some salmon; that
time is gone by, apparently never to
return This year the usual May
run didn't appear, and the June run
was also absent. For the last ten
years the river has usually been full
of fish from the Fourth OF July as
long as the canneries wanted to run.
In '83, they began coming in in great
numbers on the second, the day of
the big fire. and swarmed up the
stream through the remainder OF the
month. In '84, they were a little
later; in '85, salmon were plenty after
the 9Th; in SO. they were in profusion
from the 10th onwards. They are
looked for daily, and the probabilities
favor big run of fish any day now.
Whenever the salmon come in they
will be packed. The canneries are
all well equipped with men and ma
terial, and should occasion offer,
from 1900 to 1900 cases a day
could be packed on the river. The
volume Of the pack OF 'S7 depends in
greater degree than ever before on
the July run, as the total pack to
date is away behind that of former
years. In every cannery groups of
disconsolate Cinnamon are standing
around, viewing with hungry eyes the
FEW SALMON TOSSED on THE DOCK
From, the boat that was so fortunate
the night before as to catch eight or
ten. As the Cinnamon work by the
case, their daily wages are small
when there is only three or four
hours work for them in a day. The
fishermen are practically earning
At one OF the best Gamer
les on the river, rated for its skillful
"high boat" for the entire
season is only $50. At another the
lists show high boat" for the season
TO the lst inst. to be S51. When il
is remembered that in former years
the average catch to the
boat for the season was $500, |
and that some boats were
credited with 5000, 5000 and even
10000 fish for the seasons work, IL |
will be seen how the run has dimin- !
ished. The number of boats, has, OF !
course, a great deal to do with it. In
1876, there were about 900 boats fish |
ing on the Columbia; to day there are |
almost three times that number. |
Then fisherman laying out say OPP
posite Rainier, could count on seven
ty-five fish. Now he could have a
clear river with no other boat in sight |
Of him a great deal farther down. and !
consider himself in big luck il he |
caught six. Tally lists seen yester-
day of boats that daily drift near the |
mouth OF the river run IL, 4, l3, 81, 6,
3, 6, 4, 5, II, 3S, 3, 6, ii, etc, a very
small average.
1t is noticeable that the size and |
quality OF the salmon caught, is, If |
improved. There is no
salmon that can approach In valne or /
can equal the flavor OF
THE COLUMBIA RIVER SALMON.
This year Gamers all remark the
superior quality OF the salmon caught |
even over that of former years. Some |
Of the cannerymen are putting up for
the choice markets in the most at |
tractive shapes this unequaled food |
fish and say, and rightly, too, that
apart from the amount, il is now
more a matter of quality than guam
tity, and that Columbia river salmon |
by reason OF its inherent excellence
will always sell in appreciative mar
kets for far more than any other |
salmon in existence. This applies to |
salmon caught In the season, late |
fall salmon, while good OF ITS kind,
being confessedly inferior in flavor to |
the spring catch.
1t is probable that more salmon
has been sold to deliver than will be |
packed this season. The cannery is
an exception that has not sold a very
large percentage of its probable pack;
il the salmon is not packed it, of
course, cannot be delivered; the con-
tract can only call for what that can
merry packed. III a cannery has sold
20,C10 cases, to be delivered I. o. b.,
and only packs 1900 cases, that is
all that can be called for under the
contract. And yet it is not improb-
able that there will be little canned
salmon on the river at the close of
the season, as some of the canneries
have not sold to the limit CT their
probable pack even in the event of a
very short pack, which some OF the
best informed now think is newt
able.
Very little is going to England,
and the contrasts between the meager
English shipments of 81 and those OF
former years is noticeable. The
WdrtDick Castle and the Glenac con,
now loading at the o. r. & n. dock,
will take about eighty thousand
cases; the VilIaltd, which began dis
charging ballast yesterday morning,
will take 40,Cc0 cases to London, the
Ydrkdnd, now on the way, will prob
ably load 10000 cases, which will
make about 10000 cases that will go
to England direct from the Columbia
this season. In the meantime eastern